1941 (USA)

In 1941 the 1924 Landlord’s Game patent expired so it was dropped from the packaging. The games from this era are known as single 2nd patent games. The editions available at this time were the #6 (black and blue), #9, #11 Library edition (no picture at this time), and a new De Luxe edition #12 (no picture at this time). Other than dropping the earlier patent on the boxes the sets were basically unchanged in 1941.

1942-1945 was another story. WW2 created a metal shortage so a composite token was substituted in the #8 and #9 editions (the #8 I have with composite tokens is a dual patent with 2nd patent rules, so maybe an overage of dual patent #8 boxes were used during this period).

This set consists of two parts: a small box an a heavy duty gameboard with blue back. There is only one patent number, so the no. 2,026,082, mentioned on the lid and the midfield of the gameboard.

Instead of the innerbox being wrapped with protective cellophane the attributes are now covered by a blue grey cardboard. In this cover an engine is cut-out, with under that the significant text

"Owing to wartime restrictions we have replaced the familiar cellophane coverage with this temporary substitute."

Because of those same wartime restrictions it was also not allowed to manufacture metal tokens, hence the 7 large, coloured wood tokens (photographs show 8 tokens: one extra may have been added by the family who played this one).

The banknotes have already the well known design of a central circle with a large figure inside, MONOPOLY above it and the copyright mentioned underneath. Outside this circle are 4 spaces, two with another value statement, one with a house and one with a locomotive. The dimentions are 43 x 95 mm.

The dimensions of the property cards are 45 x 78 mm.

The #6 blue box retained its wooden tokens and the #6 black box received wooden tokens and the tokens were removed from the graphics on the box (I have seen a couple of these with composite tokens). These composite tokens are not as rare as thought as they were made for 3 years. The #11 and #12 seem to have been dropped.